If you are considering sending your child to the school, visits to the school are warmly encouraged. Please contact the school to make an appointment. This page should give you more information about how admission works and where you can go for further information and the actual process of applying.

Admission Criteria
The admission criteria as determined by the Local Authority and agreed by the Governing Body follow in priority order:
1. Verified medical need relating to the pupil.
2. Children living within the catchment area.
3. Out of area siblings of children in the school.
4. Children living outside the catchment area.

Most of the children attending The Robert Arkenstall Primary School are from the villages of Haddenham and Aldreth, although some children come from the surrounding villages.

Pupil Admission Number
From September 2015 our pupil admission number (PAN) is 40 children in any one year group. This will move up through the school with the 2015 cohort. Other cohorts have a PAN of 38. In discussion with LA Admissions we will agree to admit over PAN if our class structure has space in an appropriate age class. If a particular year group is full, parents have the right to appeal to the LA if they wish the school to provide a place for their child.

Class structure
The intake to the school is such that, in common with all other local schools, we have mixed age classes. Where numbers allow we ensure that year groups are not divided between more than two classes. Age in descending order is the principle criteria by which cohorts are divided into classes, whilst ensuring a reasonable gender balance in each class and taking account of social and emotional needs. This criteria ensures that in any one class there is no more than one year range in age.

Class sizes.
KS1 classes: 30 pupils
KS2 classes: It is accepted LA practice that KS2 same aged class may admit up to 34 pupils and KS2 mixed age classes up to 32 pupils.

Under certain circumstances we are obliged in consultation with LA to admit pupils irrespective of class numbers.

For further information on admission to school please click here to visit the Cambridgeshire County Council website page: Apply for a school place.